This present invention relates generally to control systems, and more particularly to a delay coordinating system for controlling a plurality of agricultural product (crop input) release points on one or more operatively coupled agricultural machines in response to various inherent delay times between predetermined vehicular mounted control points and the ultimate machine crop input application dispensing points. The time variance of each different dispensing point and release point must be measured and all the varying times coordinated by a computer program to bring them all together at the precise moment in time for the desired dispensing moment. The computer program is responsive to one or more stored digitized soil maps of the location of various soil types, topographical features, and/or qualifying characteristics such as nutrient levels, soil compaction, drainage or any other qualifying crop production characteristic.
Various agricultural product applicator systems and associated methods of control have been suggested at one time or another, but in each instance, these systems leave something to be desired. For example, there is a need for an applicator system that ensures agricultural products dispensed from a plurality of moving operatively coupled applicator machines are accurately and precisely combined prior to being dispensed. Agricultural product applicator systems which estimate an average composite dispensing delay time experienced when dispensing crop inputs from a moving product applicator machine have been developed. Generally, these systems are limited to use of a cursor on a display device to locate a field reference point in front of a moving machine and then apply an estimated or average product dispensing delay time such that conveyance or flow of any/all product(s) to be dispensed at the field reference point will be initiated at a single common predetermined moment before the machine reaches the target point. The point at which product flow is initiated is determined from factors including ground speed of the applicator machine and the total amount of time it takes from the moment when crop input flow is initiated from onboard the machine and the moment a crop input is dispensed from a wet boom, dry boom, and/or injector tube, for example. However, the variable nature of flows and random locations of various crop input or planting product release points associated with multiple storage devices create unaccounted for delays and result in misapplications and inaccurate combinations of multiple crop inputs.
One system known to those skilled in the art of agricultural products (crop input) application includes an agricultural machine having a single bin containing planting products such as seeds or crop input application products such as herbicides, insecticides, fertilizer, anhydrous ammonia, various chemicals, or other crop input products. Generally, such systems are ground-speed coordinated to start metering crop inputs from the product bin when the applicator machine reaches the target point, generally ignoring the lag or delay time between the start of product release from the product bin and the time a desired product reaches the ground.
Still needed, but not available with product applicator machines and associated control systems presently known in the art is an agricultural products crop input applicator system which allows one or more operatively coupled product applicator machines to commence and terminate metering a plurality of planting or crop input products at different moments in time for a common reference point in a field, for example. Such a need exists for product applicator machines having multi-product storage devices such as bins mounted upon one or more of the machines or having multi-conveyor and/or product flow devices or having multi-point product dispensing devices, for example. It can readily be appreciated that use of a single estimated or average composite system delay will be inadequate to provide for accurate and precise application of multiple agricultural products when variable rate applications are being made, i.e. where more than a single product, storage device, e.g. bin, or material transport system, i.e. conveyor is used with the machine(s).
A solution is to provide a system of variable rate, operably coupled agricultural product applicator machines with a time delay coordinating system which is capable of taking into consideration the nature of the individual products to be dispensed, the location of the individual product storage devices, i.e. bins, boxes, tanks, etc., and the type and nature of each dispensing device employed, wet booms, dry booms, nozzles, conveyors, spinners, planters, drop tubes, air tubes, injectors, etc., as well as the ground speed when variable rate applications are made across a field. Such a coordinating system must be capable of evaluating each system feature such as stated above and coordinating a unique delay time for each agricultural product (crop input) dispensed from the applicator machine(s). Using such a system will then prevent premature or latent application of the agricultural products (crop inputs) to a desired target area traversed by the operably coupled applicator machine(s). Unless the timing delay differences associated with the various machine release points are considered and coordinated, accurate and precise applications are impossible. The present invention provides a solution for the management and control of the aforesaid differences.
Modem applicator machine control systems typically have a host controller located within the operator cab of the machine, including a processor with associated input and output devices. The host is generally directly linked to at least one other controller which may also be located within the cab, and which is responsible for all communication to devices on the machine, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,630,773, issued Dec. 23, 1986, to Ortlip, entitled Method and Apparatusfor Spreading Fertilizer, and U.S. Pat. No. Re 35,100, issued Nov. 28, 1995, to Monson et al., entitled Variable Rate Application System, both assigned to Ag-Chem Equipment Company, Inc. of Minnetonka, Minn., the Assignee of the present invention. The system disclosed in the ""100 reissue patent comprises a controller accessing a soil map indicating a soil characteristic for each portion of the field. Field locations and status maps indicating current crop input level at various locations in a field to be treated are monitored by a control system. A crop input map is updated after a dispensing pass to provide a real-time record. Position locators for the machine in the field may include xe2x80x9cDead Reckoningxe2x80x9d, GPS, or LORAN systems, for example.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,355,815 discloses a closed-loop variable rate applicator. The system operates by determining a soil prescription in near real-time and dispenses crop inputs to the soil scene as a fraction of the soil prescription. The ""815 patent is also assigned to Ag-Chem Equipment Company, Inc. and is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Another system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,453,924, issued Sep. 26, 1995, to Monson et al., entitled Mobile Control System Responsive To Land Area Maps. This system expands on earlier known applicator machine controls systems including those assigned to Ag-Chem Equipment Company, Inc., by incorporating a distributed network scheme which links a host controller positioned within the operator cab to multiple intelligent controllers located at various points on the machine external to the operator cab. All of the above patents are assigned to the Assignee of the present invention and are incorporated by reference in their entirety herein. The control systems discussed herein above describe systems which, when properly adapted with the inventive algorithmic software and associated control devices, may be used to practice the present invention.
The limitations of the background art discussed herein above are overcome by the present invention which includes a delay coordination control system adapted for use on variable rate, multiple crop input applicator machines, and particularly operably coupled agricultural products applicator machines. As used herein, the term crop input applicator machine includes, but is not limited to any self-propelled or towed fertilizer spreaders, chemical applicators, planter devices, e.g. corn planter, seed drill devices, air seeders, air spreaders, air tubes and any dispensing devices that spread, apply and/or inject crop inputs, e.g. lime, inserve, crop protection agents, granular and liquid herbicides, insecticides, fertilizers, chemicals, anhydrous ammonia, nitrogen inhibitor, micronutrients, seeds, and any combinations thereof, for example. The present inventive operably coupled product applicator system addresses the problems associated with the effects of uncoordinated and undesirable individual system delays in agricultural products (crop input) delivery rates and quantities which result from use of multiple agricultural products, multiple product storage devices, multiple material transport systems, multiple metering release points, and/or multiple product dispensing devices attached to a plurality of operably coupled product applicator machines.
The present inventive variable rate, multiple product applicator system also provides solutions for the problems associated with the interactive effects of the aforesaid machine features where a single product is combined with a plurality of product storage devices, one or more material transport systems, and a plurality of dispensing devices. The delay coordination system is a ground-speed coordinated system which is customized to ensure accurate and precise application of agricultural products, e.g. crop inputs to a desired target area being traversed by the application machine(s), regardless of inherent delay differences in individual storage devices such as bins, boxes, tanks, etc., as well as inherent delay differences in individual conveyor mechanisms, flow devices, etc., and inherent delay differences between multiple crop input metered release points and dispensing points located on the machine(s). The increased precision and accuracy provided by the present invention also results in significant environmental advantages and gains by all as a consequence of reduced waste related to resource usage due to improved placement of crop inputs. As used herein, ground speed or machine speed means machine velocity. Crop input release point means the actual point where a stored product is discharged from a product storage device via a product metering device. Crop input product dispensing point means the actual point where a crop input product is discharged from the application machine. The delay coordination system can also be adapted to consider delay time differences due to distinctions in the viscosity and frictional flow characteristics for the different agricultural products (crop inputs) being dispensed from the applicator machine.
Use of the present delay coordination system allows each variable rate applicator machine to be customized to provide the optimum results for the end users. For example, any specific machine can be customized by altering the number and particular location of product storage bins and/or tanks mounted to the applicator machine. Delay times for a particular storage bin/tank may differ by as much as six to seven seconds, for example. Therefore, for accuracy, it may be necessary to instruct the product metering device to initiate the product stored in one bin/tank to start flowing six to seven seconds before the product stored in a different bin/tank. Controlling these time flow differences is necessary when products from different bins/tanks must reach the ground at the same point and/or time. Similar differences exist with various types and locations of flow mechanisms, conveyor mechanism, etc. The time variance of each different dispensing point and release point must be measured and all the varying times coordinated by algorithmic software to bring them all together at the precise moment in time for the desired dispensing moment.
While today, grid samples and other agronomic information are most commonly taken in two acre and above land increments, it is anticipated by the present inventor that conducting of a much more intense level of soil testing, e.g. tissue sampling, as well as implementation and use of other systems to determine crop input requirements at a given site will become desirable, viable and economically feasible. Even now, yield monitor data is collected in real time and can be used to help establish site-specific crop input/planting requirements. Significant changes in soil/field conditions have been found by the present inventor, to occur even within a distance of a few feet, for example. Therefore, the importance of tighter control of crop input application has and will continue to become more relevant and necessary.
The present inventive delay coordination system therefore provides a vast improvement over product application systems known in the art which use cursor anticipation devices and methods to estimate a single fixed universal estimated composite delay time for a moving applicator machine to provide some increase in accuracy and precision when dispensing products. The aforesaid improvement is the result of providing a system, as stated herein before, in which each specific control point and its associated crop input metered release point on the applicator machine are customized with a precise delay time thereby ensuring that any product to be dispensed is accurately applied. In this way, each product is dispensed for a desired target area of known conditions, all based upon formerly measured conditions and values for that desired target area.
In one aspect of the present invention, the construction and arrangement is employed wherein a variable rate, multiple crop input applicator delay coordination system is programmed relative to individual idiosyncrasies of one or more individual but operably coupled together agricultural product (crop input) applicator machines, i.e. location, length and type of individual and distinct conveyors and spreading devices such as a spreading wheel or tool bar, specific bin/tank delay differences between multiple bins/tanks, etc.
In yet another aspect of the present invention, the construction and arrangement is employed wherein a product applicator delay coordination system is employed to consider individual idiosyncrasies of one or more attached applicator machines such as a towed machine or multiple units, side by side or towed in tandem.
A feature afforded by the present invention is improved precision and accuracy of product dispensation including the desired mix and prescriptive quantity of product delivered at an anticipated location of known conditions based upon formerly measured conditions and values at the anticipated location when one or more operably coupled product applicator machines arrive at the desired target location in a field.
Another feature afforded by the present invention is the provision of a delay coordination system which is adaptable for use with any type and combination of one or more applicator machines.
Yet another feature afforded by the present invention is the provision of a delay coordination system which allows any desired product applicator machine or combination of operably coupled applicator machines to be adapted for precision applications of crop inputs. Such modifications will maintain the integrity of the product application process in any manner.
Still another feature afforded by the present invention is the provision of a delay coordination system which is adaptable via algorithmic software for use with various variable rate, multiple product applicator machines, such as between a powered applicator machine and any combination of one or more towed machines, or between different and distinct applicator machines, all while preserving the integrity of the product application process associated with each individual machine.
Still another feature afforded by the present invention is the provision of a system resulting in environmental gains for all due to reduced wasting of resources as a consequence of greater accuracy and placement, i.e. place the crop input where it is needed and will be used, of those resources, e.g. seed, fertilizer, and farm chemicals.